Are you pregnant? Or thinking about becoming pregnant? If so, the following news items will be of interest to you:

• Dieting While Pregnant - Expectant mothers who diet during pregnancy are putting their babies at risk of low IQs and behavioural problems, scientists say.  A new study found that cutting back on vital nutrients and calories in the first half of pregnancy stunts the development of an unborn child’s brain.  Read more: Daily Mail Website.
• Advice for New Scottish Mothers - A new infant strategy by the Scottish government aims to highlight how nutritional choices start before conception and do not end after breastfeeding.  The government is to advise women who are planning a pregnancy to take vitamin D supplements, and will also urge new mothers not to wait too long before introducing lumpy food to their babies.  Read more: BBC News website.

• Paternity Leave – There are planned changes to paternity leave in the UK.  The UK government has outlined plans to go ahead with changes this April, allowing couples to share maternity leave.  The change, originally proposed by the previous government, allows a father to take up any remaining unpaid leave if their partner returns to work early.  You can read more about the changes to paternity leave on the BBC News website.  The government are also to consult on a “proper” system of shared parental leave to be introduced in 2015.  You can read more about the proposed changes, and the potential impact on small  business on the Daily Mail website. Would shared paternity leave suit you?  I know that when I had my twins, Hubby used his annual leave, rather than paternity leave, as the paternity pay is a pittance!  The BBC also has a great article about being a stay-at-home dad, which you can read here.

• Parenting Lies-  According to a recent survey, many mothers tell lies about their relationships, financial status and parenting experience.  Many mothers downplay such things as the amount of television their child  watches, and exaggerate on the amount of “quality time” spent as a family.  The survey suggests that they do this because they feel under pressure to be a “perfect family”.  You can read more about the findings of the survey on the BBC News website.  I find it quite sad that mothers feel so inadequate that they cannot be honest with each other.  Sharing parenting experiences, good and bad, should be a good way to learn and develop as parents.  Spending time with other mums, who are going through the same dilemmas, should provide a good suppport network.  Why should we feel under pressure to keep up with the Jones’s, and why is there the constant need to be “The Best” at everything!?  I do know of a few mums who are prone to exaggeration and like to project the image of the “Perfect Little Family” on Facebook.  What do you think?  Do you feel under pressure to tell little white lies about such things just to fit in?  Or do you know of someone who is guilty of stretching the truth just a bit too far?  Are you able to honestly share your parenting woes with other mothers?

The restaurant was still serving breakfast, but the customer was intent on getting nuggets. I don’t understand her problem. I mean, I much prefer the breakfast menu at McDonalds!!

Source: BBC News website.

“A 31-year-old woman has given birth to sextuplets at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxfordshire.

The four girls and two boys, ranging in weight from 1.3 to 2lb, were born 14 weeks early on 14 May.

The mother, from Oxfordshire, is said to be recovering well and all of the babies are in the hospital’s specialist Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.”

[Source: BBC News website - accessed 21 May 2010.]

Congratulations to the family!  I wish them all well! 

You can read more of this article on the BBC News Website here.

I also have another amzing multiple birth story via my friend, Jennifer Miller of Twin Happy.  It’s the story of a family who had twins – one via IVF and the other naturally – and the family will never know which one is which!  Watch this video of the lucky family here.

“Many new fathers experience post-natal depression, yet most cases go undetected and untreated, experts warn.

One in 10 new fathers may have the baby blues, US researchers believe – based on their trawl of medical literature.

While this rate is lower than in new mothers, it is more than currently recognised, they told the Journal of the American Medical Association.”

[Source: BBC News Website accessed 19 May 2010]

You can read more of this article on the BBC News website here.

“Boys naturally gravitate towards cars and girls towards dolls from the moment they first crawl, a study suggests.

City University researchers put a range of toys a meter from 90 children – aged nine to 36 months – and recorded what was played with and for how long.

They found boys spent more time playing with cars and balls, while girls spent more time playing with the dolls.”

(Source: BBC Website 15/04/10)

You can read more on the BBC News website.

“After 90 years, one of Canada’s oldest magazines, The Beaver, is changing its name.

Its publishers say it was only natural that a Canadian history journal should have been named in honour of the industrious dam-building creature which is the country’s national emblem.

But in recent times the magazine’s attempts to reach a new online audience kept falling foul of spam filters – particularly in schools – because beaver is also a slang term for female genitalia.”
(Source: BBC News website 29 March 2010)

Read more of this article here.

The Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) says pupils and parents should not feel pressurised into buying end-of-term gifts for their teachers.”
(Source: BBC 26/03/10)

You can read more of this article on the BBC News Website here.

Do you buy gifts for your childrens’ teachers?  If so, what do you give?  Do you only give a present at the end of the academic year?  Or do you also give at Christmas and/or some other time?

I tend to give only at the end of the academic year.  I usually give toiletries from Vie At Home.

A Time Warner Cable (TWC) spokesman said an “technical glitch” was to blame for the mistake which lasted two hours in parts of North Carolina on Tuesday.

The company was made aware of the error after parents called in to report it.

Read more on the BBC News website here.

The School Food Trust report suggests food served by childminders and nurseries is too high in fat, sugar and salt, and lacks essential nutrients.

Read more on the BBC News website here.